Video consultation and treatment in the community smoking cessation therapy success rates in patients with mental illness: a randomized controlled trial

Abstract

Purpose

Smoking is the single factor with the highest impact on reducing life expectancy of patients with mental illness. Patients experience difficulty in participating in smoking cessation programs but are concerned about the impact of tobacco on their health and finances. Smoking cessation advice via videoconferencing might be an alternative to an ordinary in-person consultation.

Material and Method

Randomized controlled trial with follow-up at 6 months. We included patients with diagnoses of schizophrenia and affective disorder from psychiatric outpatient clinics. Intervention 1 involved daily video consultations; intervention 2 was treatment as usual.

Results

Seventy patients were included. For both/all groups/interventions, rates of smoking cessation were 45% and predictors for a 50% reduction in smoking were antipsychotic medication load [odds ratio (OR) 0.54; p = 0.045] and number of nicotine patches (OR 1.02; p = 0.06). Predictors for a reduction in the number of cigarettes to < 10 were antipsychotic medication load (OR 0.52; p = 0.04), number of nicotine patches (OR 1.01; p = 0.02) and number of cigarettes at baseline [OR 0.95 (p = 0.09); adjusted OR 0.94 (p = 0.02)]. Patients prevented weight gain during the cessation period.

Conclusion

The smoking cessation rate was high. One of the reasons for the high cessation rate was that the intervention was carried out by highly experienced and professionally qualified staff. In addition, we used free nicotine patches to increase the patients’ motivation to quit smoking. It is very important that we introduce these results into our clinical work with the patients.

Keywords:

• Smoking cessation
• severe mental illness
• randomized controlled trial
• video conferencing
• physical health

Acknowledgments

The authors would like to thank Pia Veldt Larsen, Mental Health Services in the Region of Southern Denmark, 7100 Vejle, Denmark, for her great and persistent help and guidance with the statistics for this paper.

Disclosure statement

All authors declare that they have no conflict of interest.

Data availability statement

The data associated with the paper are kept secure in OPEN a statistical department under University of Southern Denmark. The data is available, and can be accessed only be the first and last author of the paper due to ethical and security concerns.

Additional information

Funding

The study received grants from Psykiatriens Forskningsfond i Region Syddanmark (908.000 + 158.000kr). Project number is: 180811291. The grant is managed by Forskningsøkonomisk department in psychiatry in the Region of Southern Denmark and the project number is: 18081129.